


Born Of The Gods

by PrincessEvaOfTheZone



Category: K (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Greek Mythology, Angst with a Happy Ending, M/M, other characters to be added later, rating will change later
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-09
Updated: 2017-10-21
Packaged: 2018-12-25 19:27:24
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 18,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12042657
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrincessEvaOfTheZone/pseuds/PrincessEvaOfTheZone
Summary: The realm of gods held exquisite parties, that mortals could not even dream of. While the others partake in goblets filled with ambrosia and matters of the flesh, the children are taken in the care of nymphs.It was at a party like this, where Misaki met Saruhiko.Greek God!AU





	1. The Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> I've always wanted a Greek God AU! So I took it upon myself to contribute this AU in this fandom. The summary will change..

Just beyond that molten line of gold where the sun rose and set each day, sat the realm of gods. Protected by the blue sky and the soft dandelion fuzz clouds, many gods and god-borns resided. The court of the Origin gods lived at the very top of the mountain city, preoccupying the divine temple of World. Their children, the god-borns, lived in the smaller temples and lived rich lives, without worry. 

God-borns were not originally born deities. They were spirits formed from the love of other deities and awakened at a certain point in their lives to be pronounced to be born of a god, that matched their actions and the lives they lived. 

The realm of gods held exquisite parties, that mortals could not even dream of and they lasted up to a month. In these parties, occupants of the realm ate and drank, talked duties and many stories of their time visiting the realm of mortal men. How everyone loved those stories! Only the bravest of gods ventured beyond the golden border of the gates, much less set their foot on the ground, on which they were worshiped. But once they returned, the residents could not anticipate the next party more to heart the stories. Young God-borns, who were not yet awakened, also attended the parties and were left by their guardians to play amongst themselves. They had their own toys and entertainment and preferred themselves to stay out of the tiring world of grownups. And our story begins in one of these parties, where two young god-borns met and made a bond. 

_______________

It was one of the grandest parties of the year, the harvest moon. Demeter-born children were the guests of honor and Demeter herself was the host. Gods and god-borns alike attended the occasion and ambrosia flowed from every. Every servant held a golden bowl full of the most perfect fruit, offerings from the human world. Apollo-borns played their lyras and harps, and the soft songs of many flutes filled the temple. Many attendees spun in dance and many just enjoyed the fine arts, conversing with others. There was talk about the harvest, the men conversed about wars and prayers from the mortal realm, and the women gossiped about the harvest of newborns and the offspring that would be conceived at such an event. 

While adults tended to celebrate and partake in matters of the flesh amongst themselves, the youngest children and newborns were tended by nymphs, the older children playing with others. In the older child bunch sat a young boy, hair as red as wine and skin a warm caramel color. Born from an Aphrodite-born and a Hephaestus-born, his figure was blessed with snow-white wings, clearly marking his faith as an Erote, but still awaiting to be picked of birth. His spirit name was picked affectionately as Misaki, due to his feminine body and look, but being embarrassed of such a name, the boy called himself Yatagarasu. He was a kind spirit, and a loud one too, being blessed with a strong voice and predicted by many to be a musician in the future. He played with others and treated them as his own siblings, the virtue of friendship taught to him by his birth giver, but often affectionately called mother,Tatara. He also possessed a brave and fiery demeanor, passed down from his father Mikoto. He was not afraid of what other children usually were, and often was a leader of a group. He made friends quickly and refrained from making enemies.

At this particular night, he was playing with other children, when suddenly a loud clang caught his ear. Raising his eyes, he scanned the columned room, at first only spotting nymphs, from which he quickly turned his gaze away, but then caught sight of a small, hunched over figure in the corner of the room, franticly doing something to a piece of papyrus. Seeing that his fellow playmates had turned away from him to play games, he stood up, dusting his small red toga off and slowly started to approach the figure. As he drew near, he could make out the form to be another boy, who seemed about his age, with onyx colored hair and skin almost as white as snow. He was hunched over the papyrus, which was drenched in grape nectar, the golden goblet next to the purple puddle on the otherwise clean green marble. It seemed that the sound had came from the goblet tipping over. The boy seemed to be in panic, as he tried to make the paper clean, but it was a lost case. The young Erote kneeled down opposite the dark haired boy, putting his hand in aid, although the writing seemed to never be recovered again in the place where the nectar had done it's dirty deed. As Misaki reached his hand over, the papyrus was snatched under his palm and then torn apart. As he raised his head to look at the other, he saw a beautiful, but alas, scowling face in front of him. His eyes were as blue as the sky after a heavy rainfall, trapped behind dark rock frames and what seemed like reading glass lenses. His forehead was drawn in a crease and he seemed to try and shrink into himself to hide from Yata's watchful eye. 

''Why did you destroy your papyrus? The other half was still salvageable.'' Without thinking, the young Erote asked. The dark boy seemed to think on an answer, but then scoffed. 

''Why would I keep a damaged papyrus, when there is plenty of clean ones. This one was worthless.''

''But it wasn't worthless! It had ink writing on it! It must had been important to you!'' Misaki raised his gifted voice, but then toned it down after seeing the other shrink in more at it's volume. 

''Worthless poetry from a worthless being such as myself is not important to anyone.'' The boy mumbled, scrunching the papyrus in his hands even more. The sentence sparked an interest in the red haired boy. Had the other actually wrote poetry in his age?! He could hardly write his own name, but this boy was writing papyrus pages full of poetry! 

''You wrote that?! That's amazing!'' The Erote screamed, his wings flapping excitedly, raising him several inches into the air. The dark boys eyes grew large, before he grabbed Misaki's hand and pulled him outside on the balcony. They stopped at the railing, the bespectacled boy slamming the door shut.

''Baboon! Can't you control your voice? Nobody needed to hear that.'' He turned away, stalking to the railing, his midnight blue toga swishing around his skinny and pale hips, held together with a golden brooch.

''What, that you can write? And relax, everyone was playing a game, they didn't pay attention. Don't worry, your secret is safe with me!'' Yata smiled as he held up his thumb in a positive remark. 

''And I hope to keep it that way.'' After that, silence fell between them, Yata swinging his legs over the railing and watching the vast nothingness that was below, while the other boy looked at the sky and the stars. After what felt like an hour, Yata finally spoke again. 

''Whats a baboon?'' He turned his head towards the dark boy, who looked dumbfounded at the question.

''You really don't know?'' The dark boy asked. Yata shook his head no. ''It's a stupid, primitive animal from the human realm.'' It fell silent for a moment, the gears turning in the young Erotes head. 

''Hey, did you call me stupid?!'' He bellowed once more, making the other wince again. 

''You proved my point, since you can't follow orders.'' Yata blushed before slamming his hands over his mouth. He once again looked down, his brows furrowing in thought, as he ran over what the boy had said.

''Wait, you know about the human realm, really?! Have you been down there?'' In realization Yata asked excitedly, pointing downwards. His wings started flapping again once more, as they always did when the boy was excited. 

''I haven't.'' His partners expression fell. ''But I have read many books about it.'' The excitement again filled the red heads face. ''You read too?! You're amazing!'' The small angel vibrated, almost falling over the railing of the balcony, before steadying himself with his hands. 

''It's not that amazing, everyone I know can read...'' The other boy mumbled almost as to himself.

''I can't. But that would be very cool if I could...'' Yata smiled back to the boy. There was silence again. 

''If...you can sit still for more than ten minutes....I could try teaching you a bit.'' The dark boy offered, turning to his partner, whose eyes were blown wide. ''Only if you want, that is.'' He added, shyly. 

''WOULD I?!'' The Erote screamed, as he this time fell over the railing. The other boy gasped, leaning over the railing to see if his new friend had fell down, but was met with two hazelnut colored eyes a few inches away from his. He instantly pulled back, steadying himself, as the other flew back safely on the balcony. 

''Then I will take that as a yes.'' The dark boy sat down, opening his closed fist and unrolling the torn and scrunched up papyrus. ''This is the only thing I have to teach you with for now.'' He looked sad suddenly, like he was disappointed at the piece of paper. 

''It's your poem, right?'' Misaki asked, as he slowly sat down next to the other. ''Would you mind reading it to me?'' His question was answered with drawn in shoulders and another frown. Suddenly panicking, he started to flail his arms in the air. ''I-if you feel uncomfortable, you don't have to!'' He was met with silence again, but this time, the other took in a deep breath and Yata fell silent in anticipation. 

''Call me a constellation,  
name me the brightest star  
but don't be a god, for you have been placed a scar

You're no more than a fool  
lost in the blue blood pool  
Just another thinker  
To be squashed like a grape under a finger

Look at the sky, line up the swan  
Nothing more than Asteria's pawn  
And even though you are no more a believer  
You are still a dreamer''

After the boy finished, there was silence again. A silence, that couldn't be read and made him nervous. And then, before he knew it, he was squeezed against a red toga covered chest in a hug. The Erote squeezed with all his might, to show him through his actions the emotions he felt over that small piece of poetry. Unconsciously, his white wings curled around them both, protecting them from the outside world. When Misaki finally pulled back he was met with the other boys shocked expression. 

''Oh, sorry. It's just....It was amazingly beautiful. You are so talented. It's a shame the papyrus is ruined.'' They both looked down at the mentioned paper, which was sporting a purple stain on the end of the poem. ''Hey, you mentioned Asteria's swan? What is that supposed to mean?'' Yata asked curiously. The other turned away from his embrace and pointed his finger at the stars. 

''It's a constellation, you can see it by connecting the stars in a pattern. See?'' He talked as he drew an imaginary line in amongst the stars. ''There is the head, then the neck, the wings and tail.''

''Oh, yeah! I see it!'' Misaki said happily, drawing the pattern on his own. 

''There are many more constellations.''

''Can you show me more?''

The other just nodded with a small smile.

They spent a long time going over the many different constellations, before they were interrupted by the sound of the balcony door opening. They both turned around and Yata instantly recognized his parents. His radiantly smiling mother and his ever lazy looking father. He rushed into his mothers strong arms, wrapping his hands around his neck. 

''Did you make new friends, my dear Misaki?'' His mother asked, rubbing both their noses together, making the boy giggle. 

''I did, he showed me many things. He even promised to teach me how to read!'' Misaki babbled about what they did.

''Oh, how wonderful. But now it's time to go home, my little dove. Say goodbye to your little friend.'' As if getting out of a trance the small Erote turned around in Tatara's arms, to ask his last question of the night.

''I forgot to ask you! What's your name?!''

The boy turned away from the stars to give his answer.

''Saruhiko....''

A bright smile flashed on Misaki's face, as he finally knew the name of his new friend.

''Bye, Saruhiko! Promise to teach me how to read next time!'' The boy yelled, as he waved enthusiastically, while his mother carried him away. Saruhiko waved back shyly. He sat on the balcony for a while more, until he heard a throat clearing. He slowly turned around, meeting his mothers cold eyes. Understanding the sign, he stood up and dusting off his toga, rushed to keep up with his mothers long, powerful strides. He would never expect such treatment from his parents as saw with Misaki's before.

His mother, Kisa, was an Eris-born, and his father was a Hades-born. Born from such parents, he never expected any kindness from them. But after tonight, the first taste of friendship and excitement made him warm inside. 

Such was a power of an angels touch.


	2. Learning To Fly

The two god-borns didn't meet for a while. With only knowing each-others origins and names, there was not much they could do with that. The only thing that was clear, was that the young Erote lived closer to the top of the mountain and the quiet boy lived on the bottom. Even though they knew each-other for a couple of hours, they anticipated the next party for a chance to meet again. Misaki was excited with the knowledge, that the next time he would see his new friend, he would teach him reading. He loved listening to stories that his mother read to him every night and he couldn't wait to be able to read by himself. 

While Misaki was treated in a loving household with two loving men to treasure him, Saruhiko was not so blessed.

Being the child of a Hades-born and an Eris-born meant little to no love in his life. His father was as wicked as the god he was born from, if not more, and his mother matched her title impressively. They lived at the bottom of the mountain of gods, and even though they lived in a large and fancy temple, it didn't feel like home. The rooms were cast in shadows not matter the time of day. There were no windows, only a small balcony in the child's room that faced the dark abyss below the clouds and lead to the human realm. Never was there fire in the fireplaces and the marble was cold. His bed was hard and if he was remotely interested in anything, it was always taken away. 

He hid his love of poetry from the both of them, fearing that his maniac father would destroy every piece. He fell in love with it, when he had visited a party a long time ago, when he was only 7 years old.

It was a party hosted by Athena, and there were many Athena-borns as honored guests. While Niki had stalked away to ruin lives or engaged in debauchery, Saruhiko was left alone in the corner of the room. There were many god-born children running around and he even spotted his cousin, who was also an Eris-born, awakened surprisingly early. He sat alone next to the large windows, looking at the night sky, not noticing a man sitting opposite to him. He only noticed his new company, when the man spoke.

''A shooting star  
streaks across the sky--  
I wish for peace''

Saruhiko was surprised, pulled out of his thoughts. He turned to look at the man. The newcomer was tall with dark hair and a pair of spectacles were placed over his blue eyes. He was dressed in a long toga with a golden belt and epaulettes. He was holding a small book in his hands and his gaze was turned towards the sky. 

''Excuse me?'' Saruhiko had asked carefully.

There was silence for a moment, before the stranger turned towards him.

''It's more peaceful to watch the stars, isn't it? Don't you sit here to do so?''

''Uh..are you stalking a child mister?''

The man just chuckled. He turned a page in his book and looked out of the window again. 

''I've seen you always alone, Fushimi-kun. You seem lonely by yourself. But I see you enjoy to be in silence and I can tell you're a smart child. You living with your own thoughts may bring out a wonderful gift someday. And if you ever want to improve that gift, I'll be there.''

Then the man stood up, left his book behind and left. 

That was the strangest experience Saruhiko had ever had. How did the stranger know his name? What did he mean by a gift? Was he a stalker? The thoughts jumbled around his head, until his eyes landed on the book that was left behind. Slowly, he crawled towards it and after he pulled it into his lap, opened the hard cover. There was a bit of text and it was signed underneath it.

R.Munakata

After seeing the name, it suddenly dawned on him.

Munakata Reishi was an Athena-born and was a very wise man, also owning a small educational temple for poets. He wrote many pieces and was the author of many book Saruhiko had read before. He taught apprentices in his school and helped create poets in the human realm. Saruhiko raised his eyes, to read the small bit of text.

a peaceful heart  
life interrupted-  
still we all shine on

And after reading it, he knew that this small meeting would bring a good change.

That meeting had left a mark on him. He held the book close to him always and had started writing poems due to Munakata. He finally understood what he meant by the word 'gift'. Because every new piece he created, felt like a gift. He still read Munakata's works, but never met the man eye to eye again. He saw Munakata rarely in parties, but never talked to the weird man again. But once he heard that god-borns, who have come of age could apply for apprenticeship to his poetry school, he knew he would have an escape from the ice temple he called his home soon. And praise he received from the loud Erote just made his dream more solid.

\----

A year passed until the next party came, the same type of party where they met. It was the harvest moon again and the temple of Demeter was once again filled with gods and god-borns. The gossip filled the marble temple, ambrosia flowed freely and the harvest sacrifices filled the golden plates. Debauchery sounds filled some rooms, some held gossip and others held the laughter of children. Many nymphs held and cared for many new newborns, while the children who were playing in the same room a year ago had become more older and wiser.

It was an event Misaki had waited in anticipation.

He was occupied for the past few months with his new baby sister Anna, who, coincidentally, was conceived at this time last year. Apparently, Tatara had gotten drunk enough on ambrosia, which was a rare event, and didn't realize he was pregnant 5 months into the process, fearing that he was only getting fat, but Mikoto had reminded him of the memories he had forgotten in his hangover.

The small, quite, silver-head girl was born on a warm summer day, not shedding a tear. She was a peaceful baby girl and immediately had awakened after she was born. She had awakened as a Hephaestus-born and had shown more attachment to Mikoto and the color red.

Right now, a beautiful and gentle nymph was cradling the small newborn, as Misaki ran all around, trying to spot his new friend. When he didn't find a pale figure inside the crowded room, he headed towards the balcony, where they had spent their last moments together. 

But as he closed the door of the balcony behind him, there was no sight of the quite boy. Reaching the railing, the young Erote sat on it and looked at the sky, trying to remember the constellations that his new friend had shown him. He spotted many, but he seemed to have forgotten one. He knew it was mentioned in Saruhiko's poem...

''Look at the sky, line up the...what was it?

''Line up the swan,  
Nothing more than Asteria's pawn.''

The soft voice made Misaki turn sharply around, accidentally falling over the railing again. As he flew up to the balcony, he heard the patter of sandals against marble. As the Erote reached the railing, he saw Saruhiko's concerned face and his pale hands gripping it, Misaki was shocked as he saw the usually pale hands covered in red burn marks. Once he landed Misaki gripped his friends hands in his, and the other boy pulled them quickly away.

''Saruhiko, you're hurt! What happened?!''

The god-born turned his gaze away in shame and Misaki saw his eyes cloud over with unshed tears. 

''My father burned a book, that was very special to me.''

It had happened that morning. Saruhiko had always been careful at home to not read around Niki. But he had been too engrossed into the writing that he didn't notice his father enter the room. The Hades-born had snatched the book right out of his hands and mocked him.

''You read something that tool Munakata wrote? Ha, pathetic monkey, trying to hide something from me?'' After he said that, Niki had conjured a blue flame out of his fingertips and set fire to the book, walking towards the balcony and throwing it over the railing into the abyss. Saruhiko had dove over to grab it and burned his hands in the process of putting the fire out. Even though he had gotten hurt, that hardcover filled with poetry was his only safe-heaven in this realm that seemed more like hell.

\---

They stayed silent until Misaki had stretched out a pure white wing and pulled out an abnormally long feather. Saruhiko stood shocked, watching the boy wrap the feather around his wounded hands and fastened it with a loosed thread, that was hanging from his red toga. The Erote then explained, that his feathers had magical properties and helped returning anything damaged to it's original state. 

While the angel was working, the dark haired boy had stared at the snow white wings on the red heads back, wondering what it felt like to fly. Once Misaki was done they both sat down on a marble bench and Saruhiko started his promised lesson. They went over each letter and symbol, and after they were done with that, they noticed it was already morning. The celebration was only on it's first day, so they were not going home soon. They took a brake, snatching some grape nectar and a couple of meat platers and fruits, before continuing. 

Even though they were not acquainted for more than two days, they felt in piece in each-others company. Once the night set in and a cold breeze swept over them, Misaki covered them with his soft, warm feathers. On the last night of the harvest moon celebration, Saruhiko had taught Misaki to read and write and shared his temples location if he ever wanted to write to him. As the commotion was slowly dying down they picked up their materials and as Misaki was going to leave, he saw the longing look Saruhiko was giving to his white appendages. 

''Do you wish to try flying?'' The Erote asked the god-born.

Not even a second passed until Saruhiko nodded, making Misaki smile at the shy boys reaction. He slowly took his friends hand, leading him over to the railing. They both climbed up on it, and making sure he had a strong grip on his taller companion, Yata started flapping his wings. They pulled them into the cold night air and being playful, Misaki flew over the railing, making their legs dangle over the dark abyss below. Sneaking a glance at his partner, the Erote was surprised to see Saruhiko not scared, but actually staring at his feet in awe. For him it felt like the true taste of freedom. 

\--- 

The next day they were picked up by their parents, and the two god-borns feared once more, they would not see one another again for a long time. Sadness clouded Saruhiko's heart as he opened the heavy doors to his room, but was surprised that his room was already occupied by a messenger- a crow, which was as dark as the night sky. It held a piece of papyrus in it's beak, waiting for the receiver of the message patiently. 

Slamming the door behind him, Saruhiko grabbed the letter out of it's beak, unrolling it.

{A promise I await to keep for our next meeting, Let's learn how to fly}

A rare smile placed itself upon the boys lips, as he clutched the message close to his chest, and as he looked down at the white feather still wrapped around his palm, he vowed on everything he held dear, which was as small as it was, that he would treasure this sloppily written message on the crumbled piece of scented papyrus, that gave the aroma of true freedom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the boring chapter, but needed to get this exposition out of the way. Next chapter is guaranteed Sarumi cuteness. Any comments and kudos appreciated.


	3. Taste of Adulthood

After they had shared information for writing, they did it as often as they could. If loneliness crept upon them, a simple letter filled with treasured words always helped. They wrote about anything and everything. They shared their taste in music, talked about their families, about nothing at all, sometimes they just wrote teasing words. They wrote, anticipating the next event, when they could meet one another. They had been writing for months, when Misaki one night received a saddening letter. Saruhiko had to accompany his family to a trip to the human realm, and he was supposed to stay there for a couple of years. Misaki was saddened, not being able to see the boy one last time before his trip, but no matter how sad he was, he still wrote a letter back.

>  
> 
> _Dear Saruhiko,_
> 
> _I wish you luck at the trip to the human realm, and I hope you will learn many new things. But, I am also  
>  saddened, for the pause of our friendship. To make it short,  
>  I will miss you, Saru. And if you don't return soon, I will never forgive you._
> 
>  
> 
> _P.S Bring me something from the human realm and I'll forgive you._

After signing the papyrus and letting the ink dry, the Erote neatly rolled up the message and with a soft stroke to the head, gave his messenger crow it's treasure and opened the window to let it out into the night sky. With a heavy sigh, Misaki breathed in the fresh air into his lungs, and after closing the window headed out of his room to go and play with his little sister, who at this time would be already fed by Tatara. He played with the small girl for a couple of hours, rolling small red marbles around her equally red floor. When it was time for sleep, Tatara came inside, picking up his daughter in his arms, placing a gentle kiss on the sliver head, before placing the child into it's bed. The child never fussed and the sand colored hair man opened his mouth to sing a soft melody - the same melody he had sang to Misaki, whenever he was sad. A song the Erote knew by heart. As he was ready to leave the mother and child alone, Tatara turned towards him and stretched out his hand, asking his oldest child to join him. And he did, harmonizing with his mother to lull the child asleep.

After Misaki had woken up, he heard soft tapping at his window. Raising his eyes, he saw the black as night crow with a message in it's beak. He rushed to the window, opening it and letting the messenger inside, grabbing the papyrus and letting the bird rest on it's stand. He unrolled the paper recognizing the neat handwriting of his friend. 

He explained in the letter that he would depart today at sundown and had left a small teasing remark about his neediness, which made the reader turn red. He promised he would return as soon as possible and that he wished to meet him as well, wishing he didn't have to go at all, expressing his hatred for sharing his time with his wicked family. He also promised to bring something back to symbolize their friendship, if it would last until his return. 

Misaki thought that that last part was unnecessary, Of course he would never forget about his best friend.

_Come back soon, Saru. I already miss you..._

_________________________

 

Days slowly turned into weeks, week turned into months, months into years. Time flew by and as everything that was living, changed. There were born new god-borns, there were new parties, plants grew and gave new harvest. And of course, the inhabitants of the realm of gods aged. 

Years had passed and the small 10 year old Erote had grown into a handsome and brave 17 year old. His small stature still remained, but the way he presented himself in society had changed. The boy had matured, his wings had grown larger, his voice had broke and had shaped itself familiar to a crows song. His fiery personality had remained and his loyalty was as strong as ever. He had become a strong guardian and example to his smaller sister and he was still beloved by his eternally beautiful mother and father.

Tonights party was special and so the young man had dressed more presentable, for there were rumors going around, that the Fushimi family would be returning to tonights annual party. Although Misaki had waited a long time for this day, he had grown nervous. 

_What if Saruhiko had forgotten about him in these past years? Did he still wanted to be friends with him? Was he really going to return tonight?_

That last thought swirled around his head. Will he himself be able to recognize his friend? He would look a lot different, he was already 17 years old. Maybe he had grown up ugly? But what if he had gotten more beautiful? The boy had already looked like a china doll when he was a small child, delicate and pale, but how would he look now?

The Erote stood away from the party, finding a hallway, that led to a balcony, hoping Saruhiko would be able to find him. The Christmas party was in full swing and it was one of the loudest of the year. So it was no wonder, that Misaki didn't hear the soft sound of a curtain being swiped open, or the quiet sound of golden sandals slowly approaching his figure. The first sign that alerted Misaki of a newcomer, was a slightly familiar scent of grapes and ink. He held his breath in anticipation, not yet turning around, but he arranged his wings so that they didn't take up much space. He felt the scent coming closer, until the Erote knew that his new company was standing right behind him, although he was still slightly startled, when two long, skinny and pale hands went over his head, holding a silver chain. Misaki looked down, and saw a blue stone 'S' hanging from the chain, that was now being fastened around his neck. He touched the surprisingly warm jewel and finally turned around. 

What his eyes met, (when he looked high up), was a beautiful young man, with familiar blue eyes behind dark frames and even darker hair. A smirk was placed upon soft looking lips and as Misaki looked lower, he saw a matching chain hanging from the bony neck, only the stone was shaped in the form of the letter 'M' and was red. There was silence between them, until Misaki exhaled happily, as if the fact, that his best friend was back after seven long years only now reached his brain, and he rushed to embrace the other god-born. He pressed close to the man and heard the sound of a heartbeat, that rushed behind layers of skin. The Erote remained in the embrace, until he realized how awkward it seemed. Slowly, he pulled away, a huge grin plastered on his face.

''Welcome home, Saruhiko.'' 

''I'm back, Misaki.'' The other returned with a miniature smile of his own.

_________________

They spent the night catching up, Saruhiko sharing his stories about his trip to the human realm. He talked about how his father hadn't changed a bit and had gotten many human women pregnant, his mother hadn't cared and Saruhiko had been bored out of his mind. They had posed as a rich family, living in a mansion in the outskirts of a city. He had went to a human school, which he didn't like, but it was a good place to learn the human customs. But alas, nothing had compared to Saruhiko like the feeling he had, when he spent time with the Erote. He left out the part where he had missed the loud god-born every day of those seven years. He talked about some things, and nothing at all, and the red head listened, as if he was reading a prayer. 

Once they got bored, Misaki had came up with a dangerous plan.

''Hey, wanna try and swipe a pitcher of ambrosia tonight? Y'now, to celebrate?'' 

''Misaki, are you stupid? We're not allowed ambrosia, until we've come of age. We'll be breaking the rules!'' Saruhiko reminded him, exasperated at the idea.

"I know, right!? So, you in?'' The red head was already at the curtain, ready to go. With a shake of his head and a defeated sigh, Saruhiko stood up and rushed after the smaller troublemaker. 

Together they snuck around the hallways, spotting many gods and god-borns partying the night away, and being careful not to be seen, spotted a servant holding a golden pitcher and goblets on a golden tray. Misaki stopped and tried to think of a plan.

''So, what do we do to distract that servant, Saru?'' The Erote asked his partner in crime.

''Why are you asking me that, it was your plan to steal it. It's your master plan, so you think about what to do.'' Saruhiko just grumbled back, but his eyes were on alert. With a groan, Misaki understood that his unenthusiastic friend wouldn't be of much help. While they walked around the room through the hallway, he thought of a plan. When they reached the servant, the Erote stopped.

''Okay, I'll distract them, while you swipe the pitcher and then we're out of this place home free. Can you at least do that, Saru?'' Misaki asked, slightly irritated. Saruhiko just sighed, defeated, and he took that as a 'yes', in asshole language. Holding his breath, the red head exited his hiding place, trying to get the servants attention. He tapped them on the shoulder and was shocked to find out it was a forest nymph. 

Even though Misaki was born from an Aphrodite-born, and was named an Erote from birth, he still was awkward around the other sex and stammered with his words. The nymph had turned her attention to him and he didn't know what to do. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Saruhiko ready to pounce upon the unguarded tray of their main goal this night. With a gulp, Misaki cooked up a story, that there was an accident and, maybe something was spilled, or there was something teared from the plush chairs, he didn't know himself. In the end, he spit out something that had seemed to distract the servant enough for Saruhiko to do the deed. Once the nymph turned around, The Erote took off, grabbing his partner by the hand and rushed as fast as he could back to the balcony. Once they were safe, he let out a laugh, falling back down on the plush couch, adrenaline running through his blood.

''Saruhiko, we just did that! Was that amazing or what?!''

''Or what.." The teen sat next to him, putting their loot on the nearby table and sinking into the seat himself, catching his breath, a smirk placed on his face. They looked at one another and belted out in laughter, rolling around. Once they had calmed down enough, Misaki had reached for their treasure and poured them both a goblet. The sweet smell invaded their nostrils, as they each took their respective goblet.

''To a taste of adulthood!'' Misaki screamed out a toast into the night sky, pulling his fox-skin cloak closer to his body for warmth. He stretched out his hand for Saruhiko to clink their goblets together, and once he did, the god-born pulled his head back and downed the liquid in one go. It burned, going down his throat, but the taste wasn't bad. It tasted as it smelled, sweet, with slight tingle of bitterness. 

Saruhiko didn't show his reaction, or was just very good at hiding it. A few moments passed in silence, until the Erote spoke again. 

''Whs thedeel aboot abroosia? it dindt ev *hick* kic in..''

''Did you literally got drunk on one goblet, Mi~sa~ki~?'' Saruhiko drawled in a teasing tone, clearly the most coherent out of them both.

''Shad *hick* up! I cn hol it, mnot drunk!'' He weakly punched the taller teen in the chest, stumbling, even though he was sitting, into the others embrace. Soon enough, the water works started. ''Saaaaaruu, I *hick* missssed you s'much!'' Misaki cried into the dark fabric, wetting it with his tears. He sniffled and Saruhiko knew he would have to clean his brand new wolf-skin cloak as soon as he got home. Still, the smaller teen continued. ''I ws so lonely wthout you.'' The boy hiccuped again and mumbled something that made Saruhiko jolt.

''What did you say?'' He asked, not sure himself.

''I like you, Saru!'' Misaki said, raising his face out of the fabric and looking straight into the others eyes, sobering up enough to speak the sentence properly. His cheeks were flushed and his eyes sparkled both with determination and drunkenness. ''I've liked you for some time now, Saruhiko, and you being away just strengthened these feelings.'' Misaki was afraid of rejection, but the ambrosia spike in his blood gave him the confidence he didn't have, when he wished to write it in that last letter before Saruhiko's departure. He sniffed again, wiping his snot away with the sleeve of his robe. The silence was killing him from inside out and he raised his head to yell at the other to at least say something, when soft marble lips placed themselves upon his. 

Misaki's eyes grew wide, before they lidded and closed all together. He pressed harder into the kiss he was hoping he was sharing the first of with the other. Saruhiko tasted of the ambrosia they had earlier, but there was an intoxicating taste, that was solely him. His lips were slightly cold, but soft, as Misaki had imagined and perfect against his own. They lost themselves into the feeling, not caring for breathing until their lungs burned and they broke apart, panting heavily. They didn't pull far, though, their foreheads touching.

''Is this.. a good answer?'' Saruhiko panted into the others mouth, before diving back in and slipping his tongue inside the still resting mouth. A soft, surprised moan escaped the smaller one, as he started to move his own pink muscle against the other, twirling them together in a heavily erotic dance. Drool slipped over and past their lips, but it went unnoticed as they clutched at each-others clothes, to somewhat steel themselves. Misaki's hands slipped higher, over the sharp collarbones of his partner, until they reached the ebony hair and tugged his head closer into kiss, the contact not being enough to satisfy. They got lost in each-other and poured their feelings, all of them, into the passionate activity. The loneliness, the longing, the desperation, the lust, and, most importantly, love. 

Misaki laying down on the couch went unnoticed, just giving them better leverage and making their touch easier to place upon the others skin. His wings twitched in pleasure and slightly spread out, covering them from the outside world. They went at it for what seemed eternity, breaking away only to gulp down a mouthful of air and then diving right back in. Anything more was going to be too far, their relationship just being born, but the ambrosia that had mixed into their blood boiled in their veins, and they knew that they had to stop soon until it went into the matters of flesh. 

Fortunately, or not, they didn't care, a soft cough pulled them out of their passionate trance, making them look over to the balcony entrance, the Erote instantly blushing, as he recognized his mother standing there with a soft and knowing smile on his lips. The lovers instantly broke apart, fixing the bunched up clothes and swiping over their mouths to clean away the drool. 

''The party is over, Misaki. It's time to head home. Say goodnight to Fushimi-kun and let's go.'' With laughter in his tone, Tatara said, before leaving them to say their goodbyes. Misaki blushed, but placed one last peck on the other lips, before standing up and running after his retreating mother.

That same night, as both lovers laid in bed, they touched their respective jewels and with a sigh of each-others names, fell into a pleasurable sleep, the pounding of their hearts not slowing until the late hours of the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know my chapters are mostly short and not worth the wait, I really loved writing this one. I just love writing lovey-dovey scenes. Don't judge me too harshly please...:D Also, sorry for any mistakes, when I have time I'll go over them. 
> 
> P.S This Wednesday I have a free day from school, so if I get any ideas, there will be an update, if not, the next is gonna be Saturday as usual. Thank you for reading this far!


	4. An Angels Voice

The following weeks after the party were spent with secret messages, longing for the touch of each other once more, longing the taste the other heavenly being, counting the days until their next meeting. Yata was worried his crow would suffer from exhaustiveness, due to how much he sent his messages to his dark lover. Receiving them back made his heart jump three times faster, the words written with the black ink on the papyrus may as well had been said out loud against his ear sensually. The letters filled with promises of their next meeting made the Erote shiver in anticipation. He longed to see his friend and lover and cursed the law of the heavens that children who were not of age could not travel alone, due to the dangers of harpies and evil god-borns or god themselves.

It was a warm evening, when Misaki received another message from Saruhiko, a promise to meet at the Heaven Festival. The Heaven Festival was one of the greatest events of the whole realm of the gods. There were many games and challenges in poetry, music, beauty, smarts and strength. Gods gathered from every realm, many cultures merged for this week full of festivities, friendships, new bonds, culture, talents, debauchery and love. The highest amount of new god-borns were conceived on one of these nights in a quiet gazebo under the stars, in the lake with beautiful water nymphs, in the plush grape gardens of Dionysus, which no one dared to approach, the screams of pleasure driving them off or, quite the opposite, made them join the debauchery. Many would too be spotted inside the festival holding temple on a particularly cold night or due to a wish of privacy. It was also the time god-borns, who had not yet come of age, could demonstrate their gifts, for many gods and high-standing god-borns scouted new apprentices for the new season. 

The Festival was just 2 months away, and to Yata it didn't seem like a long time, but also felt like an eternity. He had waited for his friend for seven years and he held it out, but now, when his feelings and heart had been bared to his lover, even hours apart felt like torture. See, Misaki was born as a high love being. Erotes formed out of love and his purpose in life later depending on what kind of love will be showed to him and what love he gave in return, was determined solely on emotions. Yata was a very open Erote, not shying away from publicly showing his love for his family, friends and other important things in life. He wore his heart out on his sleeve and bared it to everybody, on full display. So it had hurt a lot when he was young and children who he had called friends were mean to him and left him behind. Rejection or scolding from his loved ones hurt both physically and emotionally, so it was rare Tatara (never Mikoto, he was too lazy to get angry at a simple child's mistake) hurt him. The only thing he was shy from was women, god or god-born, who were all created beautiful and able to manipulate any gods or god-borns heart or the mentions of sexual behavior or even an accidentally seen scene of debauchery. Now, being only a few months away from being a full fledged adult and on the doorstep to keeping his looks forever, the thought of sexuality was slowly forming as a thought of interest. Having just acquired a partner he was interested to spend his time with, the matters of the flesh didn't seem as unappealing as before. The passionate emotions and pleasure he had felt that night, when they first tasted each other still gave him a thrill and a full-body shiver to pair.

Yata filled the waiting time still writing to his beloved, playing and watching his little sister grow and form into a girl, whose beauty and smarts would be envied when she grew up. As the Festival grew closer each day, the chatter reached his family temple, and many Hermes-borns delivered the messages of the attendees and apprenticeships available, the games and list of meals, the duration of the said event, the location and many other details. As his parents and sister eagerly listened to the information, Misaki thought about his future. Who did he wanted to an apprentice to? Tatara and everybody else ran around him praising him and predicting he would be the apprentice of Apollo himself, being gifted with a strong but beautiful voice. Did he wanted to be a singer himself? Would Saruhiko also choose his tutor that night, and if he would, would they ever again be able to spend their time together?

________________________

The Festival night had finally come and the masses of gods seemed to never end. Gods from other cultures mingled with gods and god-borns, there was laughter and singing ringing through the night sky, bountiful meals were laid out on any available surface, that wasn't occupied by other heavenly beings. The celebration was just starting and the attendees just arriving, but Yata already felt out of breath. Tatara and Mikoto had disappeared in the crowd, talking with others, giving Anna to him, to drop the girl at the circle of nymphs playing with the younger children. After he was done, the Erote tried to weave his way out of the busy crowd and find a calmer place to be. After a good hour of avoiding getting trampled on, Misaki found a surprisingly empty gazebo, facing the sky over the cliff off the floating island. With a sigh of defeat, he plopped down on the marble bench, stretching his sore wings behind him open. Closing his eyes, he took in the scents of the night. The cold breeze of fresh cut marble under his overheated skin, the distant fragrance of grapes, the saltiness of sweat on sweet smelling bodies and the addicting aroma of food and drink made only for the higher beings of the world mixed into one scent, that only could be called heaven.

After being left in privacy for a long enough time, Yata's senses had heightened, so it wasn't very hard to notice, that a new aroma had entered his space. A smell of mystery, knowledge and hidden passion, of blood running under layers of skin and the addicting whiff of lust that boiled it. Not moving, less startling his new company, Misaki kept his eyes closed and awaited his lover to show some kind of a sign. He held hid breath quietly, as cold as ever fingers slowly caressed one of his many white feathers, dragging it's touch lower over the bone of the appendage, until it reached the point where the wing connected with his skin, making the Erote drag in a sharp breath to hold in any noise, that would try to escape. Still with his vision blocked and relaying only on touch, the red head reached carefully behind him, running over fabric, until he felt the sharpness of a jaw under his fingertips, gripping it in a stronger hold, and only opening his eyes a slit to know where to aim, placed a welcoming kiss on the other. The kiss was simple, not as power-consuming as months before, but just as enjoyable. Still keeping contact, Saruhiko slowly kneeled and guided himself to sit next to his partner. After a while they broke apart, finally facing one another after the long months of separation. 

_''In the dark of the night, under the light of a thousand stars,  
the pieces were found for two lonely hearts.''_

''Beautiful.'' The Erote exhaled against the lips, that had just uttered the words and twitched, forming a devious smile.

''Thank you, you as well.'' The red head snorted at the remark and playfully poked the other in the side. Silence fell between them, as they faced the night sky, lacing their fingers around each other in an innocent display of affection. Yata leaned his head against the bony shoulder, just taking the comfortable atmosphere in. The long fingers slipped loose after a small while, drawing invisible patterns into the others warm skin, before lifting the hand up and pressing a cold kiss on every finger. Still in silence, Saruhiko locked his dark gaze with the amber one, before leaving a cold shiver inducing, but at the same time, boiling hot trail with his lips over the soft skin of the angel. Sitting closer, the ebony head drew closer to the red toga and golden clasp covered shoulder, locked gazes with the garments wearer once again, before silently undoing the clasp to reach the nape, breathing hot breath onto it. The action made the Erote hold back a moan, but he didn't succeed. Satisfied with the reaction, the other god-born started placing open mouthed kisses against his lovers skin, sucking the skin into his mouth to leave a mark of lust, that would surely show itself later for all to see. Misaki started to writhe gently into Saruhiko's hold, placing his hands into the dark mop of hair and gently pulling it closer, pulling a dark groan from its owner, making the angel shiver against the body that held him. Saruhiko moved on from the shoulder to place a short kiss on the trembling lips, before straying further down Misaki's jaw, down his neck, pressing a gentle kiss and scrapping his teeth against his Adams apple, that pulled a loud gasp from his partner, He ventured further down to the collarbone, brushing his nose lovingly against it. Misaki had laid down on the cold marble, that was slowly warming up, gripping the dark toga of the other, looking at the sky as he was being pleasured by the person he desired. Their actions became heated fast and Saruhiko's touch had slipped down to the part of the garment where it was secured with a golden belt, and parted at the leg. The long fingers debated on entering, the hidden organ itself giving a small twitch of interest, before they slipped lower and grasped the angels thigh. 

Breaking their kiss, Saruhiko moved down Misaki's body, the other breathing harder trying to catch his breath and looking down to see what his lover would do next. The dark head stopped at the parted clothing, but small fingers pulled him by the hair away.

''W-we mu-mustn't..'' Yata gasped, trying to think rationally.

''Why mustn't we...?'' Saruhiko drawled back, but moving away towards the muscle of his lover thigh and pressing his lips against it.

''We...We're still not of aGE!'' Misaki finished the sentence with a scream as his lover bit into his thigh and started to mark the skin. He gripped the hair harder, but relaxing his grip later, afraid he would pull a chunk out.

''Are you scared of sinning tonight...?'' 

''Erotes cannot sin sexually. Our awakened form may be of sexual actions. It's not like I don't desire you, but I'm not ready yet, and I think our first coupling should be as complete beings. You may not desire me after I awaken.''

''There is no way, in which I don't desire you, Misaki.'' Saruhiko growled against his lips, before plunging his tongue into the other mouth. The way the dark god-born had pronounced his name. which he usually hated, due to it's femininity, made him believe his words. His wings started to twitch against the marble, as he fell into the shackles of lust. As they continued to kiss, the soft ring of bells signaled the ceremony of talents, which they ignored, until the sound of a throat clearing, made them scramble back.

''It seems the ceremony of talents has started. It would be wise and appreciated if you both would join it. Yatagarasu-kun, it seems like your family is awaiting your presence there as well.'' Munakata announced, fixing his spectacles on his nose. Face burning and giving his lover a last glance, he rushed away. leaving the two dark haired men to their own devices. As the other god-born tried to escape as well, the older man addressed him.

''Ah, Fushimi-kun. There was something I wanted to talk to you about..''

________________________________

 

Making his way through the crowd once more that night, Yata tried to spot the fiery head of his father, the golden locks of his mother, or the silver strands of his sister. As he was about to give up and let the crowd carry him away, Tatara's hand shot out of nowhere, dragging him closely behind. Once they stopped, his mother stood in front of him, looking him over. As he spotted the undone garment, he commented on it.

''Enjoying the Festival, sweety?'' Tatara chuckled as his son blushed beet red, hastily closing the clasp needle into the wine red fabric. After he did that, his mother flattened his hair and licking his finger, dragged it over a dark spot on his cheek.

''Mooom! Stop, it's embarrassing!'' Yata tried to get away, but his mother still had a good grasp on him.

"You need to look presentable! The tryouts for Apollo's apprenticeship are starting. Hearing the information, the Erote felt a little pressured of performing on the golden marble stage, but as he scanned the crowd, he spotted Saruhiko still talking with the Munakata guy. His heartbeat calmed down, and after a small while, he was asked to head to the stage. It was too high for him to climb up normally, so he used his wings and flew up. Yata faced the crowd, and taking a deep breath, started to sing. 

Singing was another outlet to show his emotions to the world, so pulled out everything he felt and the melody held his love, his passion, his longing, his life and love. His voice reached over the crowd, like his body never could. He spread his wings behind him at the climax at the song, closing his eyes to focus on the last note. As the song finished, Misaki was greeted with an ovation, and looking to his left, he saw the god of Music, Apollo himself, going in for a handshake, and offering him the contract wrapped in royal blue ribbon, that if he accepted, would make him his apprentice. Mind blank, the Erote placed his hand in the gods hand, still shocked, as he now held the papyrus scroll, that held his future. After his family congratulated him, Misaki rushed to find his other half, who he had seen standing by an olive tree in the back. As he reached him, the angel jumped into his lovers embrace, spotting the other also holding the same type of contract.

''Did you also get an apprenticeship?'' He asked the other, once he was put down once again.

''Munakata offered me to go to his school of poetry. It had always been my dream, ever since I was small. And once I come of age, I can finally leave my family home and start a new life.''

''We just have to wait a little more, and our lives will finally start, together!'' Misaki offered his closed fist in a celebratory sign.

''Together.'' Saruhiko agreed softly, bumping his fist against the other.

Seeing a bright future ahead of them, it really felt like they lived in paradise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for these short and boring chapters, but the boring shiz is out of the way and the main thing is gonna go down next week. Brace yourselves >:D
> 
> P.S sorry for any mistakes...gonna fix them with time....


	5. Birth Of A God

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DON'T TOUCH ME!!!!! They released the trailer for K Seven Stories (if you haven't seen it, check it out on Youtube.) I'm so happy! 
> 
> Anyways, heres this weeks chapter, sorry in advance.

After the Heaven Festival had passed in what seemed like a small moment, time continued to go on. Minutes turned to hours, hours into days, days into weeks, weeks to months. With time, as it was, every living thing changed and grew. And so did everything in the realm of the gods. Some things were born, some died and some were reborn. 

Such as all things alive, so did change the gods and god-borns, including the young lovers. Although young in appearance, Misaki was the oldest of the duo, and so did his day of birth come upon him first. It was a warm summer day, with the shining sun creeping inside the window of the Erote. Rays of light disturbing his sleep made the god-born rise from his plush bed of cloud soft pillows and sheets. Stretching his snow white wings behind his back, the now forever young Yata rose to his feet and opening the doors to his balcony greeted the day. After venturing to his bathing room and washing off the grime and sweat of the night, Yata picked out his outfit of the day, a strawberry red toga, fastened together with a golden belt with a rose buckle and golden sandals. After dressing and running a brush through his messy hair, the Erote skipped down to breakfast.

As he reached the dinning room, his family was already seated, Mikoto and Tatara at the end, and Anna sitting on the side, slowly sipping her tea. As his loved ones spotted the newcomer, a soft smile formed on their lips.

''Mornin'!'' Misaki cheered sitting down in his chair and spotting a portion of his favorite food placed upon his plate. 

''Good morning sweetheart. Happy birthday!'' Cooed Tatara, placing a warm kiss on the angels temple, before turning back to his food.

''Happy birthday, Misaki.'' Anna quietly drawled, a soft smile on her usual stoic face, Mikoto just grunting - agreeing, too occupied with lighting a smoking stick, Tatara extinguishing it every time, making the man glare at the other. 

''Thanks everybody!'' Yata thanked them, diving into his own food.

After breakfast was done and the servants had cleared the table, the family led the birthday boy out in the garden at the back of their temple. Right in the middle was a beautiful marble fountain and from a huge oak tree hanged a makeshift swing. A few statues were place around the garden as well, and two benches sat opposite each other next to the path. The garden was Yata's favorite place in the house, and here he was the happiest, no matter how sad had he ever been. It was his safe-heaven and a place that held a lot of memories. As the door leading to the garden swung open, Misaki ran out, a cheerful yell coming out of his mouth, as he tumbled down the slight slope into the green world. He rejoined his family, as Tatara whistled the song of a dove. The mother stretched out his hand for his son to take and the angel sat down.

''Today marks the day you spend your life as a divine being for eternity. Your beauty and soul has matured you into a beautiful Erote, and once you are reborn, you will become a divine creature, a whole being. And we have something for you, to celebrate your coming of age.'' Tatara said, almost in song, his language flowing like a fine art. The Aphrodite-born, turned to his husband, who exhaled a breath, before turning his attention to his oldest child. 

''Theres something behind you.'' Mikoto spoke in his deep voice. Fooled, Yata turned around, giving his father a chance to pluck a small feather from his wings, making the child in question yelp.  
A pout formed on Misaki's lips, as he watched the other red head work on the pulled feather. A soft red glow encased it, as Tatara spoke up again.

''A being of emotion, joy and sadness, of laughter and tears. A glimpse of your smile can make a flower bloom, and the sound of your cries turn the sky gray. To help you guide your way through a sky full of fiends, we give you a winged friend.'' As Tatara finished his speech, Mikoto blew the red feather away. It grew large and with a 'poof', from a wall of clouds emerged a winged horse, white as snow, flapping it's wings as it landed. It was an exact replica of Misaki's favorite childhood toy, but now, it stood before him, alive. 

''Basashi!'' The Erote ran up to the animal and embraced it's neck softly, the horse snorting into it's owners hair.

Misaki ran back up to his parents and embraced them with all of his might, offering his little sister a ride, since the girl was staring at the creature in awe. They all spent the day outside in the garden, Yata playing with Anna and Basashi, as Tatara and Mikoto conversed and after a while, joined the fun. Misaki returned to his room only when the sky was dark, and immediately spotted a messenger bird from his beloved. Around it's neck was a small pouch, and a message tied to it. Yata removed it from the bird, opening the letter.

> Misaki,  
>  I regret that I cannot join you on this day of celebration, but,  
>  I hope this gift makes up for my absence today.
> 
> Happy birthday,
> 
> Your Saruhiko

Smiling at the letter, Yata took the small pouch and opened it. His eyes grew large, as took out a beautiful ruby heart, which looked hand-carved, due to some of the still rough edges. It warmed his heart, and brought tears to his eyes. The gift was precious to him, since ruby symbolized love. And he felt loved indeed.

_____________________________

The next time they met, was after Yata had received a troubling letter. Saruhiko's handwriting had been sloppy, and he could feel the fear in the ink words. He wrote that his father was getting out of control, coming home rarely, but when he did, he was always drunk and angry, taking it out on him. He was fearing of his safety and felt he wouldn't love to his day of birth. His apprenticeship would not start until he was of age, so he couldn't legally leave home yet, unless a guardian of age took him away. They agreed on a meeting in the dark of the night, after their parents were asleep. Misaki would bring Basashi along and hide his lover until his father would go away.

That night came, and careful not to wake his family, Yata snuck into the stables and saddling his horse, rushed to his lovers aid. The cold wind of the night bit into the riders skin, but he just pulled his cloak closer and willed himself to ride faster- to take Saruhiko away from that place, that was hell in heaven.

He reached the dark marble temple after an hour of riding, spotting his target standing on the steps of the entrance, a small satchel hanging over his shoulder. The angel landed at the foot of the stairs, his passenger of the night running down to meet him. They embraced tightly, before Saruhiko mounted the horse and they left. 

They spent a week in hiding, until it was safe, and Saruhiko was eternally grateful. He was the only one, that could take him away.

_______________________

Once Saruhiko had come of age, he immediately left his family home and was received in Munakata's school of poetry with open arms. Once settled in, he could finally breath. Munakata had assigned him as his library overseer, and let him read any book he desired. Thousands of books awaited him, and the dark man felt like he was dreaming. Was he really finally free?

Being of age came with other things too. Since the both of them were considered adults, they could meet outside of parties. Saruhiko and Misaki met almost every day, no matter how busy. They met in lunch breaks, since they were full time apprentices, met in free days, any time they could. Just being in each others company and breathing the same air was enough. In free days they lounged around in Misaki's garden, the taller of the duo pushing the other on the swings, raiding the wine cellar together, riding Basashi to explore other gardens, or they just simply laid in the grass, took in the sun and dreamt of their future together. 

Just as in any relationship, the matter of pleasure wasn't ignored. Since they were old enough, their touch could explore more. Some days, when the sun shone like a flame, their blood boiled in their veins and so did their passion for each other. Gasps and moans floated into the night sky, as they moved against each other to reach ecstasy. It was sinful and felt like this kind of degree of happiness and pleasure was forbidden. Was this life a reality? Or a dream?

Each day they grew and formed as divine beings, worthy of their title. Misaki belonged to Apollo's retinue of singers and his voice seemed to reach new worlds under the gods guidance. Sometimes his voice would be strong and it would sing about strong heroes and their destinies, sometimes it could be soft and words of love left his lips, and on occasion, it was sad and sang about tragedy and loss. Yata had become a singer worthy of Apollo's mark, moving his audience each time, to tears.

Saruhiko also enjoyed his time in the poetry school, and wished his guardians could be as wise as the great Munakata. In confusion, he would always seek out his master, not afraid to ask even the simplest questions, that seemed to have the most complex answers of all. He also wrote pages full of poetry, so much, that it was almost enough for a book. On each piece, Saruhiko put out a piece of himself, the only place where he could be honest of himself, where he didn't need to hide. The storm, that lived inside his brain was gone each time he picked up the feather Misaki had once aided him with, now turned into a beautiful writing quill, encased in gold dust. This way, it always felt like a piece of Misaki was with him.

They still met at parties and left the commotion as soon as they arrived, spending their time only with each other. It was just an ordinary party, when it all changed. 

It was a spring related event, and many gods had gathered in a temple do discuss. The young lovers had, of course, hid themselves away from the crowd, lost in a trance of kisses. They kissed under the slowly setting sun, almost marking the end of another day. They laid on a plush divan, lost in each other embrace and touch, as their fingers strayed under the fabric of their clothes, brushing over naked skin. Even though they had been together for many months, they had yet to make love for the first time, but that didn't mean they hadn't tasted the addicting sense of ecstasy. Misaki's wings covered them from any possible prying eyes, that didn't deserve to share their moments together. The angel let out moans and groans into the other mouth, feeling the impending rush of pleasure nearing him towards the edge. 

''W-wait, Saru...I'm going to..'' The Erote gasped, breaking away from the kiss, to gulp down mouthfuls of air, trying to keep his mind sane. It was about impossible. His wings twitched as they always did when he was close to the edge of releasing and he dragged his nails over his partners back. 

''Go ahead....'' Saruhiko whispered in his lovers ear, dropping him into the open embrace of ecstasy, following after him soon. As Yata came down from his high, he kept whispering against his lips.

''I love you,'' Yata kissed him again.''I love you, Saruhiko, I love you.'' These three simple words, that held something life changing tumbled over Misaki's lips as easy as it was to breath air. His heart was always bared full each time they were together and he didn't hide anything in these moments. But never, even once, had Saruhiko was able to say them back. Something was always in the way, but Misaki had never said anything about it. Except now. 

''Why don't you ever say it back, Saru? Don't you love me?'' Misaki asked, concern forming over his soft features. His fingers ran over swollen lips, brushing against the sharp jawline of his beloved.

''I don't know what love feels like. But, when I'm with you, I think I kind of get it. Misaki, I--'' Saruhiko was not able to finish his sentence, as a scream of agony tore from his vocal cords, making his body double over. Yata caught him in his arms, rising to his feet, distress now clear in his eyes. 

''Saruhiko! What's wrong?!'' The other didn't answer, trying to hold in screams of pain, but failing. The screams were loud enough to bring them attention, as many guests came rushing outside. Munakata had somehow squeezed his way in the front, rushing to help his apprentice, the boy being precious to him as if he was his own son. The older man took Saruhiko from Misaki's arms, checking over the screaming figure.

''What's wrong with him?!'' Yata asked in fear. The symptoms could mean only one thing.

''He's awakening.''

______________________

Awakening was mostly harmless. It was a process of rebirth, and at most it felt like a fever. The persons body would heat up and there would be an ache. For weaker and more sickly god-borns it was more painful. The most painful experience was for god-borns being awakened as children of evil or negative aspect gods. 

They rushed Saruhiko away to Munakata's temple, Misaki following on Basashi close behind. Once they landed, the poet put his apprentice inside a room and called a preacher angel. These angels helped god-borns through their awakening and pronounced them their god of birth. Awakening could take from a few seconds up to many days, or a week, in some cases even a month. Once the angel was inside with the screaming Saruhiko, it was now a matter of time. Misaki was allowed to stay and wait in the foyer until was reborn. His heart ached for his beloved as screams and pained moans drifted through the open window. All of this was so sudden. One moment they were together, the other, something had triggered Saruhiko's painful awakening. What had the trigger been?

Many hours passed, when finally there was a creak of a door and Yata sprung to his feet, hopeful smile on his face. He faced the stairs as he saw Saruhiko approaching them, the preacher angel in tow. But his heart seemed to sink into his stomach, as he saw the expression on his lovers face. His face was paler then usual, and his eyes seemed dead. The sky blue eyes seemed almost black as tar and Saruhiko looked like he had seen death itself. Somewhere far away, bells rang, signaling a birth of a new god-born.

''As the bells of destiny ring through the skies, so does the final bell ring of an unholy person. Saruhiko Fushimi, child of divine Hades-born and Eris-born. I deem your destiny this!''

The room felt like it had frozen over and the cold wind that crept inside signaled the start of a grim future.

''A new god-born has graced it's presence in the realm of the divine. May the Highest one always stand above you, Saruhiko Fushimi, child of Dolos--

"GOD OF LIES!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry. I am such a shitty writer. I can't for the life of me push out longer chapters, but I'm really trying my best. See you next week. :P


	6. Broken Arrow Of Eros

All eyes in the room turned their attention to the cackling scream of the newcomer in the temple. The tall dark figure of Fushimi Niki was standing in the doorway, an evil smirk plastered on his face. Shadows licked at his feet as he ventured inside the room, clapping his hands in a sarcastic way.

''GOD OF LIES! Well, saw that a mile away...Ha! My little monkey is finally grown up! No more secrets, no more lies to everybody, oh, wait! That is what you are now doomed to do for eternity!'' The man doubled over in maniacal laughter, making his way towards his son, who still hadn't moved from his spot at the top of the stairway. His eyes were now blank of any emotion- no anger, no pain, no nothing. Angered by his lover's guardians words, Yata jumped in front of the god-borns way, not letting him pass.

''I will not let you harm him!'' He yelled, spreading his wings in a menacing manner. His eyes grew large and he snarled, the fighting spirit he possessed from his father's side coming deep from within. His mind was screaming only one thing: protect. Niki, on the other hand, didn't care for the young Erote in his way, and just sniffed at him, before turning to Saruhiko.

''Is this the little runt you've been spending your time with? I thought you already had thrown him away, but I guess that's a quality you possess from me - torturing your prey.'' With not as much as a look at Misaki, Niki pushed the smaller man away like a dog and began ascending the stairs, his target not even flinching at the thought, what his father may do to him if he reached him. The words that the evil man had uttered didn't sit well with Misaki, running them over in his head in confusion. What did he mean by prey?

''Saruhiko, what is he talking about?'' He asked his beloved, who still hadn't uttered a word ever since he came back from the room. Confusion made Yata's blood run cold, a warning that meant, the he wouldn't want to know the answer to the question he asked.

By now, Niki had reached his offspring and stood beside him, placing a cold hand on his shoulder, leaning down close to his ear.

''It's so tragic to see a beautiful angel's heart wither away. Shall I break it?'' The man asked, whispering the dark words, his voice dripping with malice, as he twirled a stray lock of his sons hair around his finger. The sentence seemed to have snapped Saruhiko out of whatever trance he had been in, placing a cold stare in it's way.

''I will.'' Saruhiko drawled, trying to shake his father's hand off of his shoulder, standing tall. He looked down at Misaki, none of the emotions he always had in his eyes as he looked at him present. A cold shiver ran over Misaki's skin, as his own gaze met the dark and cold one, that was running over him at the moment.

''Saruhiko, what's going on? Talk to me! Say something!? What is your father talking about?!'' Yata raised his voice, the scream echoing inside the temple. He didn't know what was going on, he only knew that something was wrong with his lover.

''This was all a game. Ever since we met.'' Saruhiko said, darkly. ''All of it didn't mean anything to me. It was all lies.'' With every word said, Misaki's heart was squeezed harder and harder. The words were breaking his heart by the second, and it became hard to breath. Was he saying the truth or was he lying? Was everything between the lies? Did it really not mean anything to him? The sweet words, the kisses filled with unimaginable passion, the days with light touches, and nights spent with laughter. The shared tears and fears. The secret letters they sent each day, filled with magnificent poetry and words of love and promises. The hope of a life together, the dream of a family and eternal love. Was it all for nothing?!

It suddenly dawned to Misaki. Through all the years they had spent together, through the hardships and the long wait of seven years they had spent apart. Through the days spent in each others embrace and nights spent in dangerous secrecy, not once in the time they had knew each other, Saruhiko hadn't said those three special words. Misaki had said them plenty, and didn't mention that his partner didn't respond, thinking the other was shy and was struggling with his own emotions. But, to think there were no emotions? That everything Saruhiko had done was fake, a lie? 

''Why?'' Was everything Yata could say, his throat filled with the taste of betrayal and hurt. The pain, that now had enveloped his heart seemed unreal and otherworldly. It would seem like a pain this strong was not able to exist, much less be endured in such a small body.

''You ask why?'' At the sentence, Yata raised his head, that had been hanging down on his shoulders, looking at the ground.''For fun. It was fun to see how a string of words could affect a strong being like an Erote, a being, that is dependent on emotion and judge of character. It was fun to see how easy it was to fool you with actions and simple words, and see how easy and dumb you were. It was fun to see how an angelic person like you, would so easily stray down a path of sin!''

''Silence...'' Anger boiled the blood in Misaki's veins, abandoning the screams of his heart.

''It was fun to see how easy it was to wrap you around my finger.''

''Silence...!'' Yata clasped his hands over his ears, and kept shaking his head, now fallen to his knees.

''It was fun to try and take your innocence, even though I failed in the end. And it's fun right now to see you break, Mi~sa~ki!'' Saruhiko spat the words out like venom. 

"SILENCE!'' Yata screamed in agony, as the painful words seemed to drive knifes inside his heart. His eyes burned with fury and heartbreak, as he removed his hands from his ears. ''You are never allowed again to speak my name! You are not allowed to breathe the same air as me! And you will NEVER DESERVE MY HEART EVER AGAIN!'' Misaki kept screaming, willing his heart not to crumble.

Silence had now filled the temple, that now seemed to have become a prison. But not for long. 

''Why would I ever desire a heart of a sinful, dirty and broken angel?'' Saruhiko scoffed at his now ex-lover, as if he was a piece of trash stuck to his shoe. 

''Say you love me.'' Saruhiko hadn't anticipated the phrase to come out of the already broken Erote. 

''Are you really that desperate?''

''Say you love me! Say it! Lie, I don't care, just say it, I need to hear these words coming out of your mouth?!'' Tears were starting to stream down Yata's face, as he stubbornly tried to calm his heart to not expect anything, as Saruhiko seemed to humor him, by opening his mouth.

''I. Don't. Love. You.'' Saruhiko said calmly, with no emotion at all.

It was finally enough. Misaki would not let this...stranger keep stabbing his heart any more. A small cold touch had stood out on his overheated skin. As he looked down, he saw the blue sapphire 'S' hanging from his neck on a silver chain. Hand shaking, Yata tore the necklace, that now felt like a binding collar, from his neck and threw it on the ground. The jewel withstood the drop, making a loud 'clank' sound in the otherwise quiet room.

Saruhiko had expected screaming, yelling, punches, hate, anything that would be a sure sign, that he would forever remain in the Erotes mind. But what he said next was not expected.

''I wish I had never met you. And I wish I had never fallen in love. I never want to see you again!'' Through tears Misaki was able to whisper, before he ran out of the door and flew away in the night sky, that seemed to cloud over with storm clouds. 

After the angel had flew away, Niki finally released his son from his hold, who was now shaking.

''What did you made me do!?'' Saruhiko yelled, fallen to his knees.

''I made you tell the truth.'' And with an evil laugh, he left the building, riding away with his harpy-pulled carriage, leaving the now forever Dolos-born to his own eternal misery.

______________________

 

A full-blown storm had formed in the realm of gods and the mortals, once Misaki had reached home cold and wet. He couldn't differentiate if it was rain or tears, that streamed down his face, as he ran inside the always warm and comforting temple that was his home. He ran past his family lounging in the main room, ignoring his mother's concerned yells.

''Misaki, sweety, what's wrong!?'' Tatara rose to his feet, as he saw his beloved first-born run past them in tears, wet down to the bone. He was concerned about why his usually happy, loud and cheerful child was crying his heart out, when he felt a small tug to his toga. Tatara looked down to see a saddened Anna looking in the direction in which her brother had disappeared. 

''Misaki....is hurting.'' Anna whispered in her calm quiet voice. Not content with standing in the sidelines of his child's life, Tatara with Anna in tow ran after the runaway angel, finding the door to his room open. As they peeked inside, they saw a broken down and fallen to the floor Erote, crying his eyes out. Slowly the mother approached his child, kneeling over the broken angel. His cries fueled the strength of the storm, that raged outside. 

Yata was an exceptionally strong Erote, his emotions directly linked to the weather. It was a rare gift, bestowed only to those god-borns, whose hearts would form to be the strongest of all. 

''Mother....it hurts. '' Misaki stammered out, almost choking on his tears. Tatara's own heart was breaking at the sight, as he brushed his fingers over the shaking figures head, brushing through fire red hair. The pain of a broken heart was a strong one.

''It will pass, love. Pain is only temporary, even the pain of a broken heart. It will get stronger the sooner you forget about him.'' 

''It will never pass, mother! It will never, because I still love him!'' Rising from the floor, Misaki fell into his mothers embrace, his heart feeling like it punished him for loving someone so much, squeezing inside his chest like it would explode any second. 

It was bad. The angel's love for the Dolos-born had not disappeared, still clinging to that hope, that what Saruhiko had said was lies. That their love was not a lie, that it did mean something. Tatara couldn't watch his child suffering this much, closing his eyes and doing the only thing, that always helped the other calm down in his dark days. He started to hum his lullaby, hugging the crying angel and rocking him to his chest, as if he were a newborn. From the other side, Anna crawled to hug her broken brother and hummed the melody along. 

That night, every living being in the realm of gods and mortal prayed for the storm to cease, prayed, that the broken heart mended fast.

_________________

 

''AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!'' The family was woken that morning by a blood-curling scream of agony, that echoed through the temple. Recognizing the voice of their first-born, Tatara jumped from the bed and rushed to his child's room. Throwing the doors open, he was met with a horrific sight.

Yata had fallen from his bed, now thrashing on the ground, clawing at his skin and drawing blood. He screamed and cried for help, as his mother pulled his hands behind his back, not letting to harm himself. 

''MOTHER IT HURTS!!!! MAKE IT STOP!'' Misaki screamed until his voice was raw and then some more. He kept thrashing and hitting anything he could reach, not caring if he was harming his family. Mikoto took him from Tatara's hold and dropped him back on the bed, binding him to it with the flame and magic, that resided in both of their DNA. He still wiggled and screamed, suffering not only from a broken heart, but also the pain from awakening. 

''Quickly bring a preacher angel! He's awakening.'' Tatara ordered, and while Anna and Mikoto went away to search for a preacher angel, he stayed behind and comforted his suffering child as best as he could. After what seemed like an eternity, a preacher angel entered the room, rushing to inspect Yata. While he was doing it, the expression on it's face turned gloom and sorrow. After he had finished, the preacher ushered the family outside, closing the door tightly.

''Is something wrong with him?'' Tatara asked fearfully. The preacher paused for a while, before he gave his life-changing diagnosis.

''Due to recent emotional trauma the child has went through, there is a very high risk of....of...''

''OF WHAT?!'' Tatara screamed desperately, shaking the poor preacher, almost making their halo fall off. They composed themselves, and the preacher exhaled.

''Death.''  
________________________

God, being the highest power in the realm of gods, were, of course, immortal. But god-borns were not as lucky. After passing their awakening, they would become immortal as well, the only risk of death being in the form of unimaginably suffering awakening. A fatal awakening was a rarity, but it wasn't impossible. If the god-born would not withstand the pain of being reborn as a child of a forever suffering, evil or negative aspect god, there was a large risk they would burst into flames and turn to ashes. It was a very gruesome process, and painful right to the end. It was the worst imaginable fate for a god, or mortal. 

And now, this fate could be Misaki's

After a few days of watching over his slowly dying child, Tatara could not take it anymore. He saddled his favorite horse and rode to the darkest temple in the realm of gods, that sat right at the border of gods and mortals. Jumping down, the furious mother entered the house of his target, slamming the door open. As he walked inside the main room, the owner of the abode came to receive him.

''My, what an honor to be visited by the fairest Aphrodite-born in high heavens.'' Niki smirked a seductive smile, placing a graceful kiss on Tatara's knuckles. Tatara in turn offered a smile, before drawing back his fist and punching the Hades-born straight in the nose, which made a suspicious crack sound.

''I'm not here to be fooled by the likes of you! I'm here for your wretched offspring!'' Tatara yelled furiously. He turned his head towards the top of the stairway, from where he had heard fast and light footsteps. Pushing away the now bleeding from the nose Niki, the mother marched towards the target of his hate.

''You wretched--!'' He raised his hand for a slap, before it was caught in a cold and weak grip. He stared at the Dolos-born harder and saw that Saruhiko looked paler then normal, but shook the thought away. ''You have doomed my beloved child! You broke his heart and now he is suffering!''

''I didn't break it, it was his fault for trusting me this much! What would you expect from parents like mine!?'' Saruhiko raised his voice, desperation to be left alone evident in it.

''You are not allowed excuses! I swear to high Zeus himself, if Misaki dies, I will personally behead you!'' Tatara screamed loosing his composure and falling to the ground in repressed tears. Shock froze Saruhiko's face cold, as he asked a dreaded question.

''What...... is his predicted Erote?'' He asked voice shaking. With trembling lips, Tatara answered.

''Pothos.''

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pothos - Erote, that symbolizes unrequited love, longing, especially for one, who is absent.


	7. Trial Of Love

He felt like death was near. 

Every part of his body was on fire and wouldn't go away if he drank water or took a bath in cold water. Sweat poured from every pore and his bed was drenched. An eternal itch was under his skin, and no matter how hard he tried to make it go away by breaking his skin countless times or rubbing against the bed, it never went away. He knew what his fate would be, to disintegrate into a pile of ash, taken away by the wind. He was trapped into a painful world of suffering, just because his heart was unwilling to let go of Saruhiko. His heart beat faster every time he even thought of the Dolos-born, and it would almost leap out through his mouth whenever they kissed or were together intimately, no matter how rare those occasions were. 

But Saruhiko had never loved him. Their whole relationship was based on lies and unrequited feelings. All those tender brushes of skin , the rare, but cherished smiles they shared, the passionate kisses under the light of the moon in his beloved garden, when his family was sound asleep. Innocent touches, that turned lust filled, because thats just how they were. All the plans of a family and eternal life spent together, no matter the obstacle. 

Knowing all of that, Yata's heart still screamed for Saruhiko's own, trying to tell it to stop lying and become one. His heart ignored his mind and for that it now bled. It was slowly killing it's owner, didn't care if it would destroy itself. Would rather combust into a pile of ashes sooner, than let go of a love, that was never meant to be from the start. 

And now, Misaki suffered. Suffered, because his foolish heart had made it clear enough - it wouldn't let go, until the end.

And people around him suffered too.

There was not a smile present on Tatara's face, as every day that passed, his darling child spent suffering. His own heart was breaking, as he saw his first-born slowly dying in front of him. He tried to put all his anger on Fushimi's fault, but deep down inside him, he somehow felt like the boy was suffering himself. Due to his Aphrodite side, he seemed to sense a suffering vibe from the cruelly deemed Dolos-born.

After all, falling in love is nobody's fault, but the cruel hand of destiny.

It had just passed the week mark, when Tatara came inside Misaki's room. The boy was still shaking in his bed, sweat dripping from his forehead, as he tried to get some much needed sleep. The mother sat down carefully on the bed next to him, brushing his fingers softly through the drenched hair in a sign of comfort. The least he could do, was make Misaki feel loved as much as he could. Because that is what a family does.

____________________________________________________

 

Saruhiko was fighting with himself. His mind was a storm and his heart was tearing in two. One half wanted to just run away and leave everything it had felt once behind, the other tried to jump out and run to Misaki apologizing for every word it had said. He tried to convince himself, that everything he had said that day was a lie, but he wasn't sure.

He had never been loved. He had come into this world as a product of a moment of lustful weakness. His family didn't care for him and never showed affection. He didn't know how he was supposed to live and was it even worth it. Once he had met Munakata, he had shown him that there were two sides of a coin. That hiding your emotions would bring a beautiful gift out. He taught him that life was never supposed to be a dark place, where harpies and demons reigned, but you had to fight through the darkness to reach the light. He doubted himself so many times in his life, and Munakata had always been there to lead him on the right path, like his father never could. 

And now, finding himself in another dilemma, he sought after the poet once more.

He arrived at the temple he had come to know as home in the short time he had been an apprentice, the halls filled with light that never seemed to disappear, no matter the season, weather or time of day. Saruhiko climbed up the long stairs, that led towards the library, a place where Munakata could be found 99% of the time. This time being one of them. The poet was standing in front of one of the large windows of the room, his nose in a book.

Not brave enough to yet ask for advice, Saruhiko stalked between the large bookcases and tried to hide, while he thought of the words to say in this situation. As he walked, he brushed his fingers over the books he went past, feeling the soft and hard covers under his touch, as if they were alive. Books always came to him easier than people or gods. He seemed to understand everything they offered and just skimming over the first page, he could predict it's entire contents, never getting it wrong. They were companions that never talked with mouths, but the words inside them were enough to feel like he was having a genuine human conversation. In a way, they were alive, their text and stories, rhymes and letters coming together to tell of a whole being. He had wished countless times, for the books to come to life and become a friend. But living in the fantasy world for too long was never a good thing for anyone.

As he passed by another bookcase, his finger caught on a hardcover of a book, making it fall from it's resting place. Saruhiko stopped and clicked his tongue, a habit, as he knelt down to pick the fallen comrade up and to put it back into it's place. As he was about to put it back, a loose page fell out of it and was taken away by a rush of wind. Panicking, the Dolos-born rushed after it, before stopping, as he saw Munakata facing him now with the runaway page in question in his hands. 

''It's been difficult without my library guardian, it was just a matter of time for it to start falling apart.'' Munakata seemed to say to no one in particular. ''What makes me wonder, is why would he come back today?'' The poet asked himself or the room. 

Saruhiko hung his head down, looking at the floor as he thought of a question to ask, and was suddenly interrupted.

''Art cannot lie.''

He snapped his head back up in confusion to what Munakata had said. Three simple words with almost no meaning, but holding such a big message, they may as well be the key words to immortality.

''Art cannot be taught, expressed or defined. It's an aspect of life, that is always only true to the heart, not the body or the mind. Only the heart is responsible for the creation of emotions assigned towards the work of art, the body being just a vessel to express the feelings to the world. A heart cannot lie, so art cannot also lie.''

The short speech made Saruhiko think. If a heart could not lie, then everything he had ever created was genuine. As the thought rushed through his head, the images of countless scrolls of papyrus sent delivered by a raven suddenly struck him. Without a word, Saruhiko rushed out of the room to his ride, never in his right mind believing he would ever rush as fast as he could towards his home.

As he reached land, he leaped from his horse, rushing to his room, slamming the door open and fetching a key from his bedside table, went to pry open a loose stone in the wall, covered by ugly tapestry. As he removed the large stone, a hidden wooden box was reveled. He had hid everything he held dear in it, so his father couldn't find and easily destroy anything, while he was not there. Inserting the key into the hole, it clicked open and Saruhiko opened the cover of it. Scrolls of expensive, golden papyrus sat in a tied together bundle, the Erote's feather crafted into a writing utensil laminated in silver, a slightly burned book filled with poetry, and a small notebook half filled with words of truth sat where they were supposed to. The Dolos-born, carefully removed the notebook, before closing the box once more and putting it back.

He sat down on his bed, before opening the small treasure he held in his hands, scanning over the words with his eyes. Each poem he read made his eyes grow larger and his heart beat faster. The words he had heard from Munakata now seemed to be screamed inside his head by his delirious heart, as he suddenly sprung from his feet, grabbed a small satchel to store the notebook in, before rushing out the door once more, now headed towards a temple, that sat at the top of the mountain.

As Saruhiko ran through the stables, he suddenly spotted Basashi still there. He had used the horse to return home the wretched day, and left the animal here...But not in this condition. He doubted the servants were at fault for the now sickly and weak looking stallion, that once stood as proud as Zeus himself. Saruhiko reached out his hand to touch the horse, immediately removing it, the unnaturally hot temperature of the animal shocking him. He as he stared at the pleading dark eyes of Basashi, Saruhiko suddenly remembered, that it was a gift for his lover, made by a piece of his own life force. And if Basashi looked like this, possessing just a small part of Misaki, then he feared what the angel was going through himself. 

Without a moment to waste, Saruhiko quickly saddled Basashi and prayed that his ride would last the trip, it's flying getting sloppier by the second, which meant it's owners heart was fighting for the right to stay alive, and it seemed, that it was loosing the fight. 

_________________________________________________________

Misaki felt his heart squeezing in on itself. It was shrinking like a grape, that was turning into a raisin, the blood starting to boil over and his body convulsed. His end was drawing nearer every second, and it was as painful as possible. He cried, not knowing what for. Was it for himself? For Saruhiko? For his lost love, the short life he was able to live, or his family he was going to leave much too soon?

Tears streamed down his cheeks, until he heard the sound of hooves landing on the marble of his balcony. He suddenly remembered Basashi, his beloved pet he was putting through the same suffering, his heart constricting once again, making him yelp out of pain. The silk curtains of the balcony suddenly flapped open harshly, as the person responsible for his current state stepped through. 

Anger replaced hurt, and with the last of his strength Misaki rose from the bed, waddling towards the newcomer and pushed him as hard as his crumbling body allowed.

''GET AWAY! I said I never wanted to see you again! How low are you?! Came to see me turn to dust? Well, wait for a few minutes and I'll grant your wish!'' Yata screamed, in between coughs and hacks. Saruhiko took him by the shoulders and shook him out of his delirious state.

''I wish not for you to die, everything said that day was a lie!'' He screamed in rhyme, finally letting his heart control his body, not his mind.

''Oh, showing off, huh? Smearing your stupid poetry in my face and gloating about your talent, while I am going to be DEAD?!'' Misaki ignored Saruhiko, being too hurt to think properly.

''LISTEN TO ME!'' The other shook him as hard as he could to make Yata listen. When he showed a shocked expression, Saruhiko continued. ''High Munakata has shown me, my love is real for thee. I thought my love that day did die, but I was wrong, for art cannot lie!'' He finished, thrusting his open notebook into his lover's face for him to read. Shaking hands took the book, as Misaki began to read, his heart beating once more in hope, that the words said were indeed true.

As he ran over every filled page, tears, but this time of happiness, streamed once more over his face, as he read words filled with raw emotion and love. Art made just for him, made clear by the small doodles of hearts and his name mentioned in so many variations he didn't know could even exist. His body shook with emotion, as his knees gave away under him, and he placed his face into his hands and cried. Cried, because his heart was leaping into his mouth out of joy, that all of this was not a lie. This love, everything they had shared, was a truth, that even a descendant of the god of lies could not lie about.

''Then why did you lie, Saruhiko? Why have you made me this way, why are you making me suffer, why are you making me regret our love?'' Misaki cried, as he faced the now kneeling Saruhiko.

''I was lying to myself. My own heart was not a part of me, almost like an object stored away on a shelf. I didn't know what love was, until you showed me, what it felt like to be wanted. Your love was like a wish being granted.'' Saruhiko confessed in rhyme, his own eyes watering as he uttered the words, softly grabbing the face of his beloved, wiping away his tears. Their foreheads touched, as they now seemed to share the pain of longing and heartbreak, but Misaki's body was still convulsing in pain of the awakening, that still sent him down the path of a Pothos-born. 

''Change me.'' Yata whispered franticly into Saruhiko's mouth. ''Change my destiny, make my body only know you and the pleasure you give me, not the ache of a broken heart.'' He growled in fear, as he slammed his mouth over Saruhiko's, joining them in a much missed kiss. It was filled with desperation, love, fear and lust, that was a welcomed burn inside of their blood. Misaki grabbed handfuls of dark hair and pulled the other closer into himself, as if trying to absorb him. Drool started to run over the spaces, where their lips didn't touch and ran down the sides of their faces, but they couldn't care less. All they knew now, was each other.

Saruhiko lifted Misaki up in his arms, the Erote's legs wrapping around his waist instantly, before he was harshly dropped down on the soft bed, the gesture making the angel gasp, as the lips returned to steal air from his lungs once more. Yata was shaking in his lovers embrace, not anymore from pain, but from the promise of mind-blowing pleasure, that was soon to come. Frantic hands ran over every patch of uncovered skin that was available, and when that ran out, it was time for the clothes to come off. Shaking fingers undid the fastenings of golden belts and pins, expensive fabric of beautifully cut togas was discarded on the floor like a dirty washcloth. Naked skin glided over one another, bringing out hiccuping moans and groans. 

''Get on with it... _Ah, AH!_ '' Misaki growled out, before their manhoods ground together in an absolutely sinful way, that made him see stars. Saruhiko's mouth fell into the juncture between his neck and shoulder, biting down hard, as if to rip out the pain his lover was feeling with his bare teeth. Yata screamed out at that, his nails dragging over the naked back of the man, that was hovering over him, leaving angry red lines in their path, dragging a low, dark groan from the Dolos-born, making Misaki shiver in pleasure at the sound of it. Saruhiko's kisses ventured lower, over the bobbing Adams apple , circling a hard nipple with his tongue, blowing cold air on it before going even lower over the constricting stomach and sharp hip bones. His tongue poked over his lips, as he dragged a wet line over his lovers erection, before he engulfed the entire sex at once. A loud scream tore from Misaki's vocal cords, as he threw his head back into the pillows and pulled the dark hair like he would pull a horses reigns. 

A little while later, Saruhiko released the organ with a satisfied sigh, reaching over at the bed side table for a vile of oil. His hands were shaking as he pulled open the crystal stop, pouring the warm liquid over his fingers, slicking them. Yata kept shivering in anticipation, as a finger slowly circled his entrance, before slowly easing inside, making him groan. After a few seconds of thrusting, Saruhiko added another, scissoring the ring of muscle open. The small pain didn't even register in the Erote's mind, after being able to suffer through so much pain beforehand. The fingers were removed, the oil vile was placed back on the table with a clink, and something bigger nudged at the Misaki's entrance, before pausing.

''Ready?'' His partner asked, thoughtful. Without answering, Yata pulled Saruhiko inside himself with the help of his legs on the others back, making them both scream out in the sudden strike of pleasure. The Dolos-born braced his hands on either side of the others head, catching his breath and pausing, least he hurt the other.

''Don't stop, take me, make me yours forever!'' Misaki growled in desperation, with no care for the small sting, only focusing on the length, that now filled his insides. Spurred on, Saruhiko started to move in a punishing pace, hiding his own growls in the others hair, biting into the pillow. The bed started to shake to due to the vigorous lovemaking, the room filing with yells, screams and moans of pleasure. After a moment, Saruhiko seemed to hit a spot inside his lover, as Yata's back suddenly arched from the bed, wings flapping franticly, as nails dragged over the place where they met skin, an animalistic moan tearing from his throat, pulling the dark head away from the pillow and connecting their lips together, breathing sounds into each other, as the pace started to become sloppy.

''Close....'' Misaki gasped into Saruhiko's mouth, his body only overcome with the fast build of ecstasy. A breathed out 'me too' was swallowed down like the most delicious of fruits. After a few more thrusts, Yata broke his mouth away, head falling back into the pillows, as he screamed his lover's name in absolute ecstasy, his partner following close second. As they came down from their high, they broke apart, laying next to one another. Feeling a much needed sleep slowly overcoming him, Misaki breathed out one last message on the others lips.

''I love you, Saruhiko.'' He said with a satisfied smile, before sleep finally took him. Smiling, Saruhiko tucked a strand of hair behind Misaki's ear, softly kissing his sweat covered forehead.

''I love you too.''

 

They awoke next morning to the ring of awakening bells. Misaki sprang up into a sitting position, waking Saruhiko in the same time. The Dolos-born kissed a naked shoulder, which was now adorned with a marking drawing of a blooming flower vine with a butterfly sitting in it, that stretched down the whole length of his right arm. 

''Welcome to the realm of gods, Misaki Yata, child of Anteros.'' 

With a smile, Yata turned to the other, placing another kiss, one of many that they would share through eternity.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anteros (Greek: Ἀντέρως, Antérōs) was the god of requited love, literally "love returned" or "counterpart love". He punished those who scorned love and the advances of others, and was the avenger of unrequited love

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is the first one I've done extensive research and I am very excited to continue it. So, if enough of you seem to like it, I'll try to update weekly. Any comments and kudos are always appreciated since they show that people like my work and that makes me try harder to bring something new for you.
> 
> Gods That Were Refrenced 
> 
> Demeter - Goddess of Harvest  
> Apollo - God of Music  
> Aphrodite - Goddess of Love  
> Hephaestus - God of Fire  
> Asteria - Goddess of Stars  
> Eris - Goddess of Strife and Discord  
> Hades - God of Death
> 
> The Erotes are a collective of winged gods associated with love and sexual intercourse in Greek mythology. They are part of Aphrodite's retinue.


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